Following the detention of over 500 individuals at a Palestine Action demonstration in Parliament Square on Saturday, commentator Brendan O'Neill launched a scathing critique of the protesters.

Speaking on GB News, he branded them "the most annoying people in the country, as far as I can tell."

O'Neill characterised the demonstration as "an orgy of sanctimony" and dismissed the participants as "a bunch of upper middle classes essentially descending on London to make a spectacle of their own virtue, to make a spectacle of how enlightened they are."

The Metropolitan Police confirmed 522 arrests were made for displaying materials supporting the proscribed organisation, with the majority of those detained being over 50 years old.

Brendan O'Neill hit out at Palestine Action protesters

The commentator described the protest as "incredibly pompous and incredibly smug," arguing that it exemplified the current state of anti-Israel activism. According to O'Neill, such demonstrations have transformed into vehicles for a particular segment of society "to lord it over the rest of us."

His comments came as Justice Minister Alex Davies-Jones affirmed that those supporting what she termed a "terrorist organisation will feel the full force of the law." She cited Palestine Action's involvement in damaging RAF aircraft and reports of targeting Jewish-owned businesses.

The Government banned Palestine Action following damage to two Voyager aircraft at RAF Brize Norton in June, making membership or support punishable by up to 14 years' imprisonment under the Terrorism Act 2000.

Despite the government's classification of Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation, O'Neill questioned whether this designation was appropriate.

Brendan O'Neill spoke on GB News

When asked about the proscription during his GB News appearance, he argued that whilst the group engaged in criminal activities and proved troublesome for many British citizens, it did not constitute a terror organisation.

He warned that censorship carried significant drawbacks beyond the commonly recognised issues. "One of the real downsides of censorship, alongside all the ones we're familiar with, is that it makes martyrs of muppets," O'Neill stated.

The commentator suggested the proscription had backfired by enabling protesters to view themselves as freedom fighters.

"It makes these people into thinking of themselves as Nelson Mandelas. Putting their necks on the line for what they believe in and being manhandle by the police and dragged off to jail cells," he explained.

Police swoop in to arrest protesters supporting the banned group Palestine Action | PA

O'Neill presented two primary arguments for reversing Palestine Action's proscription. Firstly, he maintained it was ethically unjustifiable to ban an organisation that, whilst engaging in criminal behaviour and causing frustration for many Britons, did not meet the criteria for terrorism.

Secondly, he contended that removing the ban would strip protesters of their current moral high ground. "We've made them into these martyrs to the cause. We're allowing them to pose as these great, wonderful suffrage style rebels," he argued.

The commentator insisted the protesters were "nothing of the kind," instead characterising them as "a rather pompous section of society who love nothing more than to signal their own virtue."

He suggested unproscription would expose this reality by depriving them of their self-perceived heroic status.